Speaking at the end of the first day of a new round of talks, Poland's deputy foreign minister told reporters that the two countries were now closer to a deal.

"I think that in two or three months those questions can be clarified, (and the deal) negotiated and signed," Witold Waszczykowski said on Thursday.

Daniel Fried, US assistant secretary of state for European affairs, mentioned a similar timeframe during an international forum in Krynica in southern Poland.

Plan source of continued friction between US and Russia

The US plan to deploy 10 interceptor missiles in Poland and a powerful radar in the Czech Republic has caused repeated clashes between the White House and the Kremlin over recent months.

Russian President Vladimir Putin meets US President George W. Bush in the Australian city of Sydney Friday for talks aimed at helping to defuse those tensions.

Moscow has accused Washington of seeking to upset the balance of nuclear power, and does not accept the US argument that the system is purely defensive.

Washington insists the shield is aimed at protecting it against potential attacks from Iran or North Korea and would pose no threat to Russia.